Apple Foxconn Plant Shut Down After 2,000-Employee Riot

According to a report Monday from Reuters, thousands of employees at Foxconn's Taiyuan-based facility broke out into a brawl after a scuffle occurred among a group of workers. But posts made Monday to Chinese social networking site Sina Weibo suggest differently, saying the riot erupted after a Foxconn guard beat some of the workers. Users on the site also posted that workers were setting bed quilts on fire and tossing them out dormitory windows, Reuters reported.

Foxconn has not said how long it expects the Taiyun plant to be closed, but said both police and company officials are investigating what sparked the violence.

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"The plant is closed today for investigation," Foxconn spokesman Louis Woo told Reuters.

Foxconn said police have taken 40 people to the hospital and have arrested a number of others. A separate report from Chinese news agency Xinhua said nearly 5,000 police offers were sent to the scene.

Monday's riots mark the most recent in a series of incidents that have called into question the working conditions at Foxconn. In February, a wave of reports emerged alleging Foxconn was violating a number of unfair labor laws, including the employment of underage workers, worker exposure to toxic chemicals, and involuntary labor.

Working conditions at Foxconn also came under fire in 2009 and 2010, following a string of employee suicides.

Apple, in conjunction with the Fair Labor Association (FLA), has since launched a series of audits to further investigate Foxconn's conditions. The FLA will be interviewing thousands of employees, asking about working and living conditions, compensation, working hours, and communication with management, Apple said.

In addition to Apple, Foxconn manufactures products for Hewlett-Packard, Dell and Motorola.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

PUBLISHED SEPT. 24, 2012